1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a lightweight, collapsible reel for supporting cable, conduit or tubing wound therearound and especially to a reel collapsible to a thickness no greater than approximately the thickness of the two side by side circular end flanges of the reel. The components of the reel are especially adapted for fabrication of synthetic resin material which results in an extremely lightweight reel that retains its load bearing properties and characteristics after repeated in-field use of individual reels.
Collapsible reels for supporting products such as elongated stretches of a cable, conduit or tubing wound around the core of the reel are known but have not heretofore gained widespread recognition in the field. Although deficiencies in marketing of past collapsible reels may have been a contributing factor in limited customer demand for prior reels, the inability of such reels to fully collapse and the excessive weight of the reels even when collapsed no doubt has been a limiting deterrent to widespread adoption and use.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Brown, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,791,606, illustrates a cable spool said to be collapsible but as illustrated in FIG. 4 of the patent drawings, folding of the central bar or leg segments 13 results in collapse of the reel such that there is still a space between opposing flanges 5 that substantially exceeds twice the width of one of the flanges 5. Thus, Brown in the '606 patent does not disclose or suggest a collapsible lay flat reel. Brown teaches the provision of a spool in which the end flanges are movable toward one another but opposed margins of the foldable leg segments form a V when folded which limits collapse of the reel flanges.
Similarly, in Culp U.S. Pat. No. 5,649,677, the patentee provides a collapsible spool having a plurality of foldable arms 16 which fold into a state of maximum collapse, as illustrated in FIG. 8. The overall thickness of the reel when collapsed is substantially greater than twice the thickness of one of the end flanges.